Hikikomori no Jinsei (Or, The Life of the Withdrawn)
by pusa.is.me
Summary: The story of a social recluse, the ghost from his past, and his bishounen doctor that may or may not steal the girl of his dreams away. How does a hikikomori survive the outside world with his sanity (or whatever is left of it) intact? An AU NejiTenSasu, or SasuTenJi, whichever way you want to call it.
1. Track One: Horchata

Mild-mannered Hyuuga Hinata trailed their visitor to their front door, walking a few steps behind, as was taught to her by the older and more conservative members of their big family. Her pearly lilac eyes followed the visitor in front of her, and watched how there was an obvious bounce in his step, although the circumstances of his visit was nothing to be joyous about.

Stopping a few steps from the doorway, she bowed her head slightly, a gesture of respect to their guest. "Gomen, Lee-san," she whispered, eyes downcast. "I wasn't able to help at all."

Rock Lee, budding kickboxer and martial arts extraordinaire, turned and flashed Hinata a thumbs up. "There is nothing to be sorry for, my gentle gardenia!" he exclaimed, and Hinata suppressed a light blush, long used to the antics of her nii-san's best friend. Lee was loud and boisterous, and he has a habit of calling her after a variety of different flowering plants, but Hinata knew he has a good heart, and he was considered an important family friend of the Hyuugas, no matter that her nii-san always denied his affiliation with the hyperactive martial artist.

"Neji will surely snap out of his stupor soon enough!" Lee boomed confidently. "I promise to help him see the error in his ways, or I will do five hundred turning side kicks in five minutes!"

Hinata was not sure if "snap out of his stupor" was the right idiom to describe her nii-san's condition, but she was still grateful for Lee's positive attitude. Lips lifting in a small smile, she bowed once again at their visitor. "Hai," she answered, in gratitude. "Arigatou, Lee-san."

"Yosh!" the kickboxer pumped up his fist. "I am afraid I must go now, pretty petunia," he said by way of farewell. "I still need to complete one hundred laps around the sports oval before nightfall, or I promise to do two hundred leg raises on a bed of burning coals!"

The Hyuuga lady tried her best not to sweatdrop, but merely nodded in goodbye instead. She was about to close the door when Lee turned back to face her once more.

"Oh, and if you can, tell Neji that _she _is coming back today."

Hinata paused in mid-step, her breath caught in her throat. "S-she?"

Lee nodded, and grinned so wide Hinata was momentarily blinded by his flashing teeth. "Tell Neji that. It may just be what he needs to hear." And then Rock Lee was gone in a whirlwind of dust and autumn leaves.

Hinata was left standing in the doorway, clutching her hands tightly against her chest, her heart blooming with hope for the first time in months.

"She's come back, Neji-nii-san. She's finally come back."

**Track One: Horchata (Vampire Weekend)**

"Tokyo, finally!"

Blonde bombshell Yamanaka Ino half-squealed, half-screamed in the lobby of Haneda Airport, causing the other newly arrived to glance at their direction. Not that keeping quiet would have helped—Ino had been a head turner even back in sunny California, where she had spent half of her childhood and most of her teenage years.

Beside her, her best friend Hatake Tenten cringed, yanking her friend's arm and pulling her away from the staring crowd. "Could you be any louder?" the brunette scolded, dragging Ino with her to the conveyor belt to pick up their baggage. "We're not in L.A. anymore, you know."

The blonde beauty grinned coyly before wrapping a lithe arm around Tenten's athletic form. "Oh stop being so uptight for once, Tennie-pennie," she teased.

"I am _not _uptight! And stop calling me _that_!" Tenten protested, wishing not for the first time that it was legal to dropkick people—one blonde loudmouth in particular—in public. But Ino was her closest friend, and although she was pretty sure that the Yamanaka would forgive her if she did attempt to use her taekwondo moves on her, Tenten was not willing to spend the rest of her holidays listening to Ino mutter about her sore behind.

"And it's not like this is your first time to come to Japan," she finished, stopping in front of the conveyor belt, on the lookout for her trolley bag. "Haven't you lived here before you migrated to L.A.?"

Ino crinkled her nose. "In Okinawa!" she said, and threw out her arm in mock exaggeration. "Which is half a world away from Tokyo!"

"Right," Tenten rolled her eyes in exasperation. "Seriously," she muttered, grabbing her bag from the belt and putting it down on the floor beside her. "I have half a mind to send you back to California by yourself."

Ino gasped. "You wouldn't dare!" she almost yelled. "I've been anticipating this trip for months! Think of all the hot guys I could hook up with!"

"Hey, don't forget we're not here to enjoy ourselves," Tenten reminded her friend. "The university sent us for a research project, remember?"

"Yeah, yeah," Ino waved a hand in dismissal. "Seriously, Tenten, you're so wound up you're like a ribbon coiled around a screw or something."

"That doesn't even make sense," Tenten muttered, picking up Ino's bag when the blonde allowed it to go past her. Grabbing her trolley bag, she began to turn toward the waiting area, eyes still on her friend as she started to walk. "Anyway, I better go call—oof!"

She hasn't gone past two steps when she bumped into the back of someone who smelled like mint and the tiniest hint of oranges.

"Oh, I'm sorry!" she quickly apologized as she stepped back in surprise, only to find herself face to face with the most gorgeous guy she has set her eyes on in her twenty-two years on earth. Fair skin and the darkest blue-black hair she has ever seen, Tenten was immediately drawn to the stranger's onyx eyes, which almost glimmered red when the sun reflected against his pupils.

The handsome stranger merely nodded, before heading toward wherever he was going. Tenten blinked, not sure whether to be affronted by the quick dismissal or to laugh off the incident. And then Ino was beside her, grinning cheekily and wagging her eyebrows suggestively.

"Hot guy at twelve o'clock?" she teased.

Tenten rolled her eyes and started walking again.

"I'm going to ask for his name," Ino suddenly squealed, before rushing off to follow the handsome man.

"Ino, don't you dare!" the brunette gasped, and watched in horror as Ino all but lunged onto the stranger, using a skill she has mastered back in L.A. to get guys to go out on a date with her. Facepalming herself, Tenten shook her head as she fished her phone out of her bag, dialing her brother's number as she looked around the big airport, searching for a spot where they could wait.

Ten rings and one sleepy "hello" later, Tenten was talking to her older brother, Hatake Kakashi, who was supposed to pick her and Ino up from the airport five minutes ago.

"Where the hell are you, nii-san? You're late!" the brunette demanded, although she already knew the answer before her brother could give an explanation to his whereabouts.

"Gomen, Ten-chan," Kakashi drawled from the other line, and Tenten could hear scuffling, as if her brother had suddenly bolted up from bed and was currently looking for his pants. "I had to help out an injured baby pug that I found in the highway, and . . ."

Tenten chuckled despite herself. "Oh stop it, nii-san," she answered. "Your excuses are lame as ever. Ino and I will just hire a cab. At least have some dinner prepared for us when we arrive, okay?"

"Hai, hai," the older Hatake replied. "I'll go buy some of your favorite sesame dumplings as an apology."

"You better," Tenten grinned, before ending the call. She turned, and almost dropped her phone when she found Ino's face barely six inches away from hers.

"Ino! What the hell!"

Gone was the cheery attitude of the blonde, replaced by the sour look of someone who was rejected completely. Tenten blinked.

"I take it you didn't get his name?"

The petite rookie model crossed her arms across her well-endowed breasts. "A hundred bucks says he's gay anyway."

"Ooh, never pegged you for a sourgraper," Tenten laughed, before grabbing her friend's arm and dragging her to the glass doors. "Come on, nii-san woke up late so we're going to ride a cab instead."

Ino perked up immediately. "Isn't your brother really hot?"

Tenten tightened her grip on the model's arm and pulled her more harshly than before. "Shut up, Pig."

**Hikikomori no Jinsei**

**(Or, The Life of the Withdrawn)**

* * *

**Welcome to my newest series, dear readers, old and new alike! I hope you enjoyed the first chapter, and would be interested enough to stay tuned for more. Do drop me a line or two and let me know your thoughts, and maybe, just maybe, I can tweak the direction of the story based on the general reaction of everyone.**

**Reviews will be rad, constructive criticism cool, and flames, well, they will be used to fan the flames of Gai-sensei's everlasting youth.**

**Yosh!**

**OT note:**

******To my mysterious Guest who dropped a line in my _Scars and Stitches _story, just in case you find yourself lurking here, I am still interested in that illustration offer, but your link did not appear in the reviews page (eep). Maybe try it with spaces, so that this site won't censor it? Or just send me a PM anytime.**

******And on that note, is anyone interested to make a cover image for this story? Puh-lease? I couldn't draw well to save my life, so, erm, yeah.**


	2. Track Two: The Spirit of Giving

"Neji-nii-san?" Hinata whispered, knocking softly against her cousin's bedroom door. She heard a rustling sound, and imagined Neji moving inside the room. What he did there Hinata did not know; she had not entered the bedroom in more than six months, ever since her older cousin decided one day that he no longer wanted anything to do with the outside world.

"Nii-san," she repeated, her voice gaining volume. "I . . . I left some soba on the stove, okay? Just heat it up when you get hungry. Hanabi and I are retiring for the night."

Hinata knew Neji only left his room when she and her younger sister Hanabi had gone to sleep, so as to avoid any chance encounters in the hallways. Had they been staying in the Hyuuga ancestral house, Hinata was certain it would be almost impossible for Neji to venture out even past midnight—theirs was a big extended family, and there was always the possibility that someone would be out of his room even that late in the day. For that reason—and many others besides—Hinata was grateful that her father allowed her, Neji, and Hanabi to get their own place, their little haven, away from the otherwise constraining claws of their clan.

"Lee-san dropped by again earlier, by the way," she continued. Hinata knew that Neji _knew _Lee had visited—who wouldn't, with how _loud _the martial artist could be? But habit forced her to converse with her cousin just the same, although he has stopped speaking to her six months past. "He . . . he's worried about you, nii-san." A pause. "We all are."

The rustling on the other side of the door continued, and Hinata, like many nights before, realized the futility of her actions. It was as if Neji was not even listening to her—for all she knew, he was wearing his headphones again, loud music blaring inside his ears, threatening to make him permanently deaf by the time he reaches the age of thirty.

"Anyway, I'm going to bed now," she finally whispered, after a few more moments of silence. "Good night, nii-san."

And she started to walk away, only to remember Lee's parting words to her that afternoon. Suddenly backtracking, she pressed her left ear against the door, debating with herself if she should attempt to talk to her cousin once more.

Then, "By the way, nii-san, Lee-san said that . . . he said that _she's _come back today." She held her breath, hoping against hope to get a reaction, anything, from the only brother she has ever known. "Tenten-san's come back, Neji-nii-san," she tried again, placing her left palm against the cool wood of the door, hoping the gesture could be felt by the occupant of the room. "She's finally come home."

And then there was silence, as Hinata realized that the rustling has stopped, and it was as if Neji was actually hearing, listening to her. Her free hand instinctively gripped her chest in anticipation.

"Nii-san?"

A few more seconds, and Hinata heard the familiar sound of rustling once again. Whatever reaction Neji might have with her news had already passed, and Hinata knew she would get nothing more out of her cousin for the night.

Sighing in sadness, Hinata pulled her hand away from the door and dropped it to her side.

"Good night, nii-san," she whispered a final time, before walking away and heading toward her own room.

_**Track Two: The Spirit of Giving (New Pornographers)**_

"Coming!"

Lee heard the chirpy voice of his childhood friend from the other side of the door, and only that kept him from splintering the partition that separated him from one of the few people he held dearest in his heart. A few more seconds of waiting impatiently (where he took the opportunity to test his strength by bench-pressing on the Hatakes' porch) before the front door flew open, and there stood in front of him (more like above him, since he was still parallel to the wooden floor) was Tenten, five years older, but lovely as before.

"My beautiful bluebell!" he exclaimed, scrambling up and throwing himself against his friend, all in the span of one second, too quick to dodge even for Tenten, whose reflexes were usually better than the average person.

"Get off me, you _baka_!" was the automatic response to his bone-crushing hug that followed, and it felt as if Tenten had not left at all. Just the thought of it was enough to make Lee sob manly tears, enough so that his friend's peach-colored top immediately got soaked around the shoulder.

"Lee!" Tenten protested, trying to disentangle herself from the kickboxer's embrace. "Don't drip snot all over my new blouse, for Kami's sake!" But there was mirth in her voice, and Lee detected the kind of fondness that Tenten reserved just for him, and it was more than enough to make him cry manly tears all the more.

"Seriously," Tenten half-chuckled, half-wheezed another second later. "Can't breathe . . . Could you _please _ . . . not kill me while . . . I'm still suffering from jetlag?"

And then Lee was pushing himself away, and quickly he prostrated himself and banged his forehead against the porch, apologizing for his insensitivity and poor display of self-control, and promised that he was going to eat fifteen bowls of Ichiraku's Curry of Life as punishment for his deeds.

The martial artist lifted his head when he heard Tenten chuckle, and the next second he was up again, and this time, it was Tenten who enveloped him in her embrace.

"You haven't changed, have you, Lee?" she laughed near his ear, and Lee wanted to shout that he has not; in fact, he was still youthful as before.

"Well then," Tenten continued when she finally pulled away. "Dinner's almost ready, so why don't you come in?"

"I shall feel very much obliged to taste your wondrous cooking, my stellar sunflower! I have no doubt that spending time overseas has greatly improved your cooking skills!" Because childhood friend or not, Lee was not about to lie and say that Tenten's past culinary experiments were in any way edible.

Tenten snickered. "Of course. No one makes a meaner boiled egg than I do." And before Lee could praise his friend for this fantastic news, she continued, "But nii-san is cooking tonight. Penance for waking up late and not picking us up from the airport."

At the mention of his mentor's rival, Lee's face scrunched up just a bit, wondering if it would be considered a betrayal to Gai-sensei if he partook of Kakashi-senpai's cooking. One loud growl from his stomach five seconds later told him that eating had nothing to do with martial arts anyway, at least, not for tonight.

"Yosh! Okay then! I shall devour all that Kakashi-senpai serves us tonight!" he declared, pumping his fist up the air. "I shall even eat your boiled eggs!"

Tenten laughed and called him a _baka _again, before grabbing his wrist and dragging him inside. Lee, however, did not miss the way Tenten looked over his shoulder, as if expecting another person to be waiting _im_patiently for all the commotion to subside before he makes an appearance. Nor did he not fail to notice how the brunette's grin slipped off just the tiniest bit when she realized that Lee had come without companion.

And just as Tenten closed the door behind them and hurriedly pushed him toward the living room, Lee realized that he was not that hungry anymore.

_**Hikikomori – literally means "pulling inward, being confined," i.e., acute social withdrawal**_

"Hikiko-what?" Ino asked, when Kakashi said the word that best described Tenten and Lee's childhood friend. They were seated around the dining table, enjoying the food that Kakashi had prepared, when Lee nervously informed the brunette of Neji's condition. Kakashi, then, took the liberty of using the actual term that the Japanese used for cases similar to the Hyuuga's—incidents of young adults who withdraw from social life, who seek isolation and confinement to extreme degrees.

Tenten clenched and unclenched her fists against her lap, willing herself not to lash out at her brother and friend, convincing herself to listen to their explanation first—surely there was a reason why they had kept her in dark about one of her closest friend's condition, right?

But it was so _very _hard.

"When did this start?" she whispered, because any louder and she was sure she would be yelling at the two men at the table.

She saw Lee steal a glance to Kakashi before answering. "A couple of days after Hizashi-san's funeral."

Tenten blinked. Neji's father was dead? Why was she not informed of _this_ either? "Hizashi-san . . . ?"

"Hit-and-run," Kakashi answered the incomplete question. "DOA. Nothing the doctors could have done."

The brunette closed her eyes to stop herself from shaking. Kind, gentle Hizashi-san dead, Neji socially withdrawn . . . what else were they keeping from her? Why hide anything from her in the first place?

"Tenten, I'm so sorry!" Unlike only half an hour earlier, Tenten could not muster the humor she had when she first saw Lee in tears. All she felt for her friend at that very moment was anger, a kind of burning in the pit of her stomach that refused to be quelled, not even when Ino laid a steady hand on her arm in an effort to calm her down.

"I wanted to tell you! I swear! But . . ."

"I told him not to," Kakashi finished for the younger man. Tenten snapped her head at her brother's direction, hazelnut-brown eyes blazing with fury. "There was nothing you could have done, Ten-chan. It would have only made you worry incessantly, and you needed to concentrate, what with your licensure exams so near."

A small part of her tried to convince herself that her nii-san was only looking out for her, was only concerned about her studies—she did tend to get too jittery to concentrate on anything if she was worried—but a bigger part wanted to scream and cry and curse Kakashi at the top of her lungs.

"You had no right," she hissed, voice teeming with venom.

"Actually, I do," Kakashi answered, and Tenten hated the way he said it so matter-of-factly. "I'm your guardian, after all."

"I'm not fifteen anymore, nii-san!" she screeched, fists thumping against the table, making Ino jump slightly beside her. Even Lee cowered a little; it was a known fact that Tenten was beyond frightening when she was angry. And she was really, _really_ angry right now.

"You have no right to hide these things from me! Neji is my friend!"

"And I'm your brother," Kakashi answered coolly. "I still know what's best for you, whether you like it or not."

"Some brother you are," Tenten finished, pushing herself up and storming out of the dining area, feeling angry and brokenhearted and _oh so betrayed._

**Hikikomori no Jinsei**

**(Or, The Life of the Withdrawn)**

* * *

**For Mayasha-chan. I forgot to write it on the first chapter (some sorry excuse for a writer I am), but she is the one who made the request for a NejiTenSasu, so really, she's the one you should thank (or blame) for this series. **

**Thank you to my reviewers ****Ichigo-chan, ****Ami1010****, Guest, ****ButtercupandButch****, ****katskee****, ****Chisa Chispa, ****Midnight Insomniac****, ****anthropomorphychan****, ****Senka Hitomi****, ****FruitySmell****, ****marionne345****, and ****dianalovely1995****. Twelve reviewers for the first chapter. Not bad, not bad at all. And to all those who added me to their Alerts and Favorites, a big thank you for the support!**

**And just to answer my anonymous reviewers very quickly:**

**Chisa Chispa, NejiTenSasu it is then XD I myself am partial to NejiTenShika . . . err . . . I mean, what the hell am I saying? This is a NejiTenSasu series, for Pete's sake!**

**dianalovely1995**** (well, actually, I tried to leave a reply via PM, but your PM option is disabled), I must say, I am seriously flattered that you would still follow this series even when the title and summary did not catch your attention. I have such faithful and wonderful readers, yes I do.**

**There will be actual Neji screentime next chapter, and not just mentions and quiet rustles from outside his bedroom door (ooh). I promise.**

**In the meantime, ****reviews will be rad, constructive criticism cool, and flames, well, they will be used to fan the flames of Gai-sensei's everlasting youth.**

**Yosh!**


	3. Track Three: The New Year

Last call for passengers on Japan Airlines' B747-4, destination Los Angeles, California. Please proceed to Terminal 1 for boarding.

_Tenten stood up from the cold bench in the airport's waiting area when she heard the announcement. Picking up her sling bag, she huffed a puff of air to settle her nerves and churning stomach. No use throwing up on her first flight out of the country, right?_

_To her right stood Lee, bouncing and sobbing at the same time, lamenting the fact that their precious periwinkle was going to leave them and let her springtime of youth blossom in a faraway place teeming with dangerous men as tall as katsura trees. (Considering the fact that katsura trees usually reach up to 100 feet tall, Tenten was pretty sure Lee was exaggerating yet again.)_

_To her left stood Neji, ever silent and supportive, holding Tenten's ticket and boarding pass for her, lest she misplaces it and be not allowed to leave the country. She suspected though that he wanted to throw away the ticket just so she'd have an excuse not to leave, but Neji was nothing but honorable—and maybe just a tad too proud—so she was confident that the Hyuuga would not sabotage her trip (and risk earning her eternal ire in the process)._

_In front of her stood her brother Kakashi, and beside him was her Gai-senpai, two guys she had looked up to as older brothers and guardians—well, Kakashi _was _her guardian, and Gai, their neighbor and Kakashi's childhood friend and self-proclaimed rival, just didn't want Kakashi to beat him in anything so he volunteered to be Tenten's as well._

_Four boys, the most important people in her life, standing around her, to send her off as she ventured into a whole new life. _

"_Tenten! I shall miss your fiery flame of youthfulness!" Lee, unable to hold back, lunged at the pretty brunette, wrapping her in well-toned arms that resulted from hours upon hours of back-breaking training in the dojo. _

"_L-lee!" Tenten choked, attempting to push her childhood friend off of her. "Can't breathe!"_

"_Tenten!" And then Gai-senpai was at her other side, engulfing both her and Lee, spouting something that suspiciously sounded like "Go and run into the setting sun and let the power of your youth explode!"_

_A fraction of a second more and she was able to breathe again, and when she looked up she found Neji holding Lee in a vice grip, while Kakashi had grabbed Gai by the scruff of his neck. _

"_Thank you," Tenten wheezed, not paying attention to the sobbing of the two hyperactive martial artists. "I thought I was going to die before I get a chance to step on the plane."_

"_Better hurry if you want to get on the plane," Kakashi smirked, before tossing Gai away like a used towel, only to catch his sister as she jumped up to give him a hug._

"_Thank you, nii-san," Tenten half-grinned, half-sobbed. "I'll call you the minute I land in Los Angeles, I promise."_

"_Take care of yourself out there, Ten-chan," Kakashi replied, ruffling Tenten's hair affectionately. "I'm certain you'll do great things while you're there. Go kick some American ass, Tokyo girl."_

"_Of course!" Tenten beamed, before planting a quick kiss on her nii-san's cheek. And then she turned to Neji, silent, beautiful Neji, and before the sixteen-year-old boy could open his mouth to say his goodbyes, Tenten had her arms wrapped around him, her face buried in his shoulder._

"_Promise you'll write me every once in a while?" she whispered, even when she felt her best friend stiffen in her arms. She did not begrudge him for it—Tenten knew how uncomfortable Neji was with physical contact, especially with girls._

_Still, it was the last time they would see each other in a long time, so to hell with his reservations. "Can you please hug me back now?" she chuckled after a few more seconds of tense silence. "I'm starting to feel like an idiot here."_

_And then she felt it—warm arms around her small frame, a soft sigh brushing against her ear, and a promise that he will keep in touch, and she better do great things in California or he will poke her to death the next time she comes for a visit._

_Tenten laughed out loud and pinky swore Neji on it._

_**Track Three: The New Year (Deathcab for Cutie)**_

Tenten walked down the Fiction aisle of the Kinokuniya Bookshop, blowing off steam before she could proceed with her plans for the day. Loitering around book stores and going through their shelves always helped calm her nerves, and she needed her nerves in perfect order if she was going to see Neji, because it wouldn't help things if she broke down before she could even break down Neji's bedroom door.

Absentmindedly fingering a new copy of_ The Next Queen of Heaven_ by American writer Gregory Maguire, Tenten let her mind wander, reminiscing about the past and plotting ways to reach out to Neji while working out the details of her research assignment for the next six months.

When she and Ino received permission to go back to their home country to do research for the Psychology Department's newest project, Tenten had been ecstatic. The last time she had the chance to go home was more than a year ago, just a couple of days of Christmas vacation before she graduated from college.

Neji had seemed okay then, just his usual stoic, silent self, so she never expected him to end up becoming a recluse a few months after their graduations. The last e-mail she received from him was in May that year, but by then she had been busy with her requirements and review for her licensure exams that she thought nothing of it when his messages stopped coming in. She figured he must have been busy preparing for his licensure test as well. Besides, she was sure Lee or her nii-san would have told her had anything bad happened, or, worse comes to worst, Hinata and Hanabi knew of her contact details as well.

But no one from her small group of friends had informed her of anything, and she mentally cursed them all for ganging up against her and keeping her out of the loop. So what if she tended to lose concentration whenever she worried too much? This was her best friend they were talking about! They had no right to hide Neji's condition from her!

Gripping the book tightly, Tenten furrowed her eyebrows and quickly turned the other direction, with half a mind to march back to her house and demand a better explanation from her brother.

And as quickly as she turned, so did her face smack against a broad back—twice in the span of two days.

"Oof!" she exclaimed, stepping back and losing her balance, so that she landed, butt first, on the floor.

Wincing, Tenten looked up, and came face to face with the same stranger she bumped into in the airport.

"Ahh!" she panicked, and quickly stood up to apologize. "I'm sorry . . . again! I wasn't looking where I was going . . . again!" She bowed her head guiltily, risking a peek at the pretty boy in front of her, secretly admiring the way he glared at her with sexy onyx eyes.

The handsome stranger eyed her blankly, and Tenten was about to chuckle and wish for the ground to open up and swallow her whole, when said guy suddenly eyed the book she was clutching, pretty eyebrow shooting up in wonderment.

"A Maguire fan?" he asked, voice deep and silky and maybe just a bit hypnotizing.

"Huh?" Tenten asked stupidly, feeling like an idiotic fangirl. And then, remembering the book she was holding, she quickly stared at it and then waved it frantically at the man. "N-not really," she squeaked, and then quickly composed herself, wondering why she was getting so worked up over a guy. Ino would surely laugh at her if she found out about this. "I mean, I was just . . . uh, looking for a new book to read."

The handsome man nodded, and then quietly turned to the rest of the Maguire titles, as if deep in thought. After a couple more seconds of awkward silence—Tenten almost scampered away in embarrassment, this was definitely worse than when she became infatuated with Deidara-senpai, who turned out to be queerer than most—and the guy pulled out a book from the shelf and quietly handed it to the brunette.

Tenten accepted the book out of reflex, blinking quizzically at the person in front of her. "I think that title suits you more," he said matter-of-factly, before turning around and walking away, hands in his pants' pockets.

"Uh, thank you?" she called out, before actually looking at what book the handsome stranger had given her. It took a couple of seconds before the meaning of the title registered in her brain—_Lost_, one of Maguire's earlier works—and suddenly she felt her face heat up in utter humiliation.

_Why that piece of . . ._ Tenten began to think murderous thoughts, finally finding an outlet for her pent-up anger. _What is he trying to imply? That I'm bad with directions?!_

In righteous indignation, Tenten quickly grabbed the first book she laid her eyes on, and, smirking at the appropriateness of the title, threw the paperback edition of Maguire's _Son of a Witch_ at the unsuspecting retreating form, with the accuracy of one who was her batch's gold medalist for archery in their district four years ago.

The book hit the man's head from two shelves down, and Tenten quickly ran out of the bookstore, before the stranger could even figure out what had hit him, literally.

"_**And girls need cold anger. They need the cold simmer, the ceaseless grudge, the talent to avoid forgiveness, the side stepping of compromise. They need to know when they say something that they will never back down, ever, ever."**_

_**―**__**Gregory Maguire**__**, **_**Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West**

Hyuuga Neji sat still in a corner of his room, ears plugged with a pair of earphones, loud rock music blaring in his eardrums. He was not sure how long he had been in that position—probably a little less than two hours, if he considered how many times the CD had repeated all sixteen tracks—but he honestly didn't care. It would be another four and a half hours before Hinata and Hanabi would retire for the night, and he had no plans of leaving his room until then. And even when he finally did, it was only to get food and other essentials he would need to last the following day. And then he would plug his ears once again, isolating him further from the world.

It was a mistake, taking the earphones of yesterday—because his ears were starting to hurt from all that lead guitars and bass screeching in his ears—because he had heard Hinata's news, and was now feeling all kinds of frustrated because of it.

_She_ was back. His best friend. His constant companion until she had left four years ago, on a scholarship grant to study in the United States, to fulfill her dreams.

_The girl that got away._

And now she was back, but he would not, _could not_ leave his room to see her, and he hated himself something fierce because of it.

And it was not as if he wanted to shut himself out of the world, but circumstances forced him to retreat to the sanctuary of his bedroom, and he didn't know how to end it. He missed the outside world, he knew that much, at least, but he felt so worthless, such a failure, that he couldn't face other people without wondering how much they would look down on him.

Because his father died, and it was all _his_ damned fault.

And Tenten or not, Neji was not quite yet ready to forgive himself for that.

Or at all.

**Hikikomori no Jinsei**

**(Or, The Life of the Withdrawn)**

* * *

**Quick update, because I won't be able to update over the weekend, so I'm squeezing this in right now. Next update will be late next week, possibly the weekend, so consider this an early release. Or a double issue. Like WSJ scans.**

**Speaking of WSJ, I read a rumor in a forum that Tenten appeared in the latest Naruto chapter. Is this true?!**

**Also, Fruity was being a bully, so I'm bullying her back. Update your story, woman! (This goes for Senka Hitomi as well. I'm youthfully blackmailing you both and shamelessly plugging your stories "The Puppy Situation" and "The Road to Recovery" here, and there's not a damn thing you can do about it.)**

**I'm reading _The Next Queen of Heaven _by Maguire right now, and it's hilarious. Just sayin'.**

**Oh, and please visit _Rookie Roulette_'s "Queer Love," for a prequel-ish chapter of this series, featuring Deidara, Kakashi, and, gasp, a Neji cameo.**

**Thank you to my wonderful reviewers ****Ichigo-chan, ****dianalovely1995****, ****Ami1010****, FruitySmell, ****Mayasha-chan****, ****Chisa Chispa, ****misspandalily****, ****ButtercupandButch****, and ****anthropomorphychan****. **

**Again, ****reviews will be rad, constructive criticism cool, and flames, well, they will be used to fan the flames of Gai-sensei's everlasting youth.**

**Yosh!**


	4. Track Four: Gone

Ino raised a pretty eyebrow at the unexpected visitor in the living room, who was bouncing and beaming happily this way and that as she led him to the couch. She had been sulking quietly in Tenten's room—cursing her best friend for leaving her all alone to be bored out of her wits on her second day in Tokyo, yet not really blaming her for wanting to check on her childhood friend as soon as she could—when a loud knock echoed from the front door, making her jump up slightly and wonder what kind of Neanderthal could make such a racket instead of using the stupid door bell. It didn't help that she was literally home alone—Tenten had told her that she wanted to check on Neji and could they please postpone the city tour the next day, _pretty please_, and Kakashi went to work—so it was up to her to open the door and face the idiot banging his fist against it.

"Thank you for letting me in, my dearest dandelion!" one hyperactive martial artist extemporized and merrily plopped down the soft chair. "I hope you have rested well enough last night to invigorate your blossoming youth and face the new day with a burning fire in your heart!"

Ino blinked, marveling at the curious being in front of her. She has been called a lot of names in the past—sexy lady, babe, _bitch_—but never a dandelion. She was not sure if she should be flattered or insulted by it. But the innocent look that her guest was giving her said it all—he meant it as a compliment, no matter how weird and unconventional it sounded.

That didn't mean she was ready to be chummy-chummy with Rock Lee all of a sudden.

"What are you doing here?" she asked, hands crossed against her ample chest, before eyeing the wall clock warily. "It's barely 9 a.m., for Pete's sake. Where in the world do you get that energy so early in the morning?"

Lee beamed, his teeth pinging brightly, causing Ino temporary blindness—she has not yet learned to avert her eyes from Lee's grins at that time. "I have come to escort you around the city, darling daisy!"

Ino blinked the second time around. "What?"

And then Lee was up his feet, teeth pinging once again—Ino was prepared this time, quickly looking away lest the glare hurt her eyes—before grabbing the pretty blonde's hands. "Tenten called me this morning, cursed me unyouthfully for hiding my rival's condition from her, and then asked me to accompany you to wherever you want to go for the day!"

Ino mentally cringed. _Of course, _she muttered to herself. _Classic Tenten. _

"Come now, wonderful watsonia!" the energetic guy exclaimed. "Let us run into the sunset and make the most of our springtime of youth together!"

_So now it's a watsonia_, Ino sighed, before saying out loud, "Okay, first of all? It's not even lunchtime. I'm pretty sure the sun sets in Japan about the same time it sets in other parts of the world. And second?" Ino had to clench her fists, marking her lithe arms with her long, manicured fingernails, "There is no way I am running with you anywhere to make the most of our whatever."

If Ino thought her mean-girl stint would dissuade Tenten's childhood friend, she was gravely mistaken. "Do not fear, my ravishing ranunculus!" Lee replied happily. "I will show you the best training spots in Tokyo, so that you can cultivate your seed of springtime and . . . "

Ino raised her hand to indicate that Lee should just _shut up_. "You know what a ranunculus is?" she asked incredulously. There were less than a handful of guys she knew who had even the slightest idea what a ranunculus looks like, and all of them unfortunately batted for the other team. "Are you gay or something?" she asked bluntly.

Lee looked at her curiously. "If you are asking if I am happy, why then yes! I am very happy today. Thank you for asking, my sweet pea!"

Ino was not sure if she was going kick her guest out the door or facepalm herself instead.

_**Track Four: Gone (Switchfoot)**_

It was Hyuuga Hanabi who answered Tenten at the door.

Immediately the youngest Hyuuga jumped at her, enveloping her with a giddy hug and a squeal of delight, followed by a litany of words strung by more squeals and childish giggles.

Tenten could only laugh happily as she returned the younger girl's embrace, telling Hanabi that she had missed her too and that yes, she was staying longer this time around, no need to smother her like there was no tomorrow, really.

"But Ten-nee," Hanabi whined, even when Tenten knew she was only faking it, because Hanabi was more kickass that the average teenager, certainly tougher than her mild-mannered older sister, at least. "You've been gone for so long, I almost forgot how you looked like."

The brunette chuckled and patted the young Hyuuga on the head affectionately when Hanabi finally allowed herself to be disentangled from the embrace. "I'm here now, aren't I? Aren't you going to let me in?"

"Oh!" And then Hanabi was dragging a grinning Tenten inside the house, slamming the door so loudly the older woman jumped slightly. "Welcome back, Ten-nee!" the feisty Hyuuga announced, placing both hands on her hips, impishly grinning in a way that mirrored Tenten's own smirk.

"It's good to be back," Tenten whispered, smile mellowing all of a sudden as she took in the small apartment that the three Hyuugas called their home. Nothing much has changed since her last visit, and suddenly Tenten felt her heart ache at the familiarity—and unfamiliarity—of her surroundings.

"Hina-nee is at work right now," Hanabi suddenly said, voice changing in tone, as if she was affected by Tenten's mood change. "She'll be home in time for dinner."

The brunette nodded, and then crossed her arms on her chest. "Hanabi," she said, suddenly sounding businesslike the younger girl actually squeaked. "Why didn't you tell me about Neji and Hizashi-san?" If there was a slight accusation in her voice, Tenten paid no attention to it, thinking that they all deserved a little of her resentment anyway.

"I wanted to!" Hanabi shifted into defense mode, and Tenten mentally patted herself on the back for leaving an impact on the younger girl in a way she was sure she hadn't with Hinata. She guessed that had she asked the older Hyuuga lady the same question, Hinata would have stuttered and sobbed and begged for her forgiveness. Not so Hyuuga Hanabi. And really, Tenten liked it better that way.

"But Neji-nii ordered me not to bother you with news about the accident because you were graduating, and then when he stopped coming out of his room, Kaka-nii talked to me and Hina-nee and told us not to tell you about what happened!"

Tenten frowned at Hanabi's explanation. Oh her nii-san and she were going to have a really _long_ talk about this soon. But more than that, she was a little miffed at the idea of Neji not wanting to inform her about what had happened to his father.

"That stubborn idiot," Tenten muttered out loud. "Keeping everything to himself, as always." And then, turning to the direction of Neji's room, she started walking, a panicked Hanabi a few feet behind.

"Ten-nee!" Hanabi exclaimed, catching up to Tenten in three seconds flat. "What are you going to do?"

"I'm going to give that idiot a piece of my mind," the brunette growled, rolling imaginary sleeves up her toned arms.

"But the doctors said not to force him to go out of his room or there might be a repeat of what happened!"

Tenten paused in midstep and turned to her companion. "What do you mean 'a repeat of what happened'?" she asked, eyeing the Hyuuga girl suspiciously.

Hanabi stood frozen for about a second, before gulping when she received Tenten's scalding glare. "About a week after nii became a recluse, Otou-san sent a couple of men to force Neji-nii out of his room." She paused, as if collecting her thoughts. "Tou-san had a duplicate key of the room, of course, and when they opened it to get Neji-nii out, well," and Hanabi offered a sheepish grin, "Let's just say Neji-nii didn't win the last MMA district tournament for nothing."

Tenten winced at the image of a bunch of grown men getting beaten up by an infuriated, trapped Neji. _Those poor fellows, _she thought miserably, and yet she felt a sort of pride for having a best friend who was so badass he was actually dangerous. After all, it was she who had convinced him to try martial arts, just so the other boys in their grade would stop teasing him about his long, shiny hair.

"The doctor that Otou-san consulted afterward warned him not to force a hikikomori out of his room because he will, in the worst case scenario, turn violent and hurt himself and the people around him."

The brunette took a sharp intake of breath and released it slowly, forcing herself to remain calm and remember everything she had learned in college about dealing with people with mental disorders. "So much for breaking down his door," she whispered, trying to make light of the situation. Then, turning to Hanabi, "Well, at least let me try and talk to him, 'kay?"

The young Hyuuga nodded gratefully in response, before walking with Tenten toward Neji's room.

_**Every day we borrow brings us**__** o**__**ne step closer to the edge**__**.**__**  
**_

"Look, I'm sorry, okay?" Tenten apologized for the tenth time since she and Ino got in Kakashi's car and drove their way to the Hyuuga residence. She was supposed to meet Lee there, and they would spend the evening keeping vigil in the living room, waiting for Neji to come out of his room on his own, per his usual routine. Tenten got the idea of staking out when Hanabi mentioned to her how Neji goes about his day—or night—and she realized that the only way to talk to Neji outside the confining walls of his room is to wait for him to willingly come outside, since her attempt to reach out to him a few hours ago was a fail in the most epic of proportions.

Not the brightest of ideas, but it was not like Tenten, or anyone else, had other suggestions so far.

"I still can't believe you made me spend the whole day with that weirdo!" Ino huffed. "I thought rosebuds were going to start sprouting from my ears!"

Tenten coughed discreetly to hide a chuckle. It was no news that Lee was overzealous in everything he does, especially if it was done out of a request from Tenten, and sometimes Neji's female cousins (she knew Lee has a soft spot for Hinata and Hanabi; he was probably following the footsteps of their Gai-senpai, when he declared Tenten as his charge, even when Kakashi was her legal guardian).

"And he has never repeated a flower's name the entire day!" Ino wailed. "What, does he secretly have a list of all the flowering plants known to men that he reads through every night?!"

To this, Tenten grinned. "You know, I won't be surprised if he does."

Exasperated, Ino threw her arms upward as Kakashi stepped on the brakes, indicating that they have arrived at their destination. True enough, a couple of feet away stood a bouncing man clad in green spandex, waving at them happily and praising the glory of their youthfulness.

Tenten laughed and turned to her best friend in the backseat. "Look, I promise I'll make it up to you, okay?" she said, then crossed her heart for added effect. "It's just that . . . Lee and I have to do this, Ino. Neji, we can't just . . ."

Ino waved a pretty hand in front of Tenten's face and returned the brunette's grin. "Oh don't worry about it," she said. "I was just exaggerating, as always." And then, smiling softly, "I know how important this is to you. We don't have to report in the university until Monday anyway." Then, a sudden twinkle in her eye, "Besides, this will mean I get to spend time alone with your smokin' hot brother while you spend the night with your dysfunctional friends. I win."

Tenten aimed to swat her friend's face, but the blonde had already anticipated it, so she was easily able to dodge the attack. "Ino! Don't you dare try anything!" They were friends, and of course Tenten trusted Ino with her life, but the mere idea of her friend hooking up with her nii-san sent nasty shivers up and down her spine. "I mean it!"

"Like I said," Ino chuckled. "Too uptight."

Kakashi coughed, indicating that he was still in the vehicle with them, and that he could hear every word they were saying. "Better get over there before Lee cartwheels to the car while reciting a poem about the sunset in a beach."

Tenten flashed her brother a glare, then muttered, "Don't think that we're okay now just because you offered to drive me here, nii-san. I'm still angry with you. And you still have a lot of explaining to do!"

"Hai, hai, Ten-chan," Kakashi mumbled, then reached out to open the glove compartment of his Toyota, only to reveal a box of strawberry-flavored Pocky. "Here, I got you some on my way home from work."

Tenten's eyes lit up at the sight of the treat, before frowning and then glaring again at her brother. "Don't think you can buy my forgiveness with a measly box of Pocky, nii-san no baka." And then, quickly snatching the box, she grinned. "But thank you. And you got my favorite too!"

Kakashi grinned and patted Tenten's head affectionately. "I'll see you tomorrow, okay? Be good, Ten-chan."

Tenten smiled and nodded in response, thinking that no matter how furious she was with her brother, she still loved him to bits. "Don't give Ino any sake, okay?" she warned him then, throwing her friend a disapproving look. "She'd end up crawling under your covers just so she could bite off your ear." _True story, _Tenten muttered to herself when Kakashi's eyebrows rose in fake surprise.

"Hey!" Ino protested, before mock-socking the brunette from the backseat.

Tenten laughed and opened the Toyota's door. "Bye, you two," she waved, as Ino hurriedly moved to the front seat, which amused Kakashi and miffed Tenten.

"I'll take care of your brother, Tennie-pennie!" Ino teased as Kakashi put the car in reverse. And when Tenten screeched at her friend to stay the hell away from her brother, _I mean it, Pig!_, Ino answered her with a loud guffaw and blew her a kiss as she and the older Hatake drove away.

_**Life is still worth living. Life is still worth living.**_

Fifteen minutes to midnight and Tenten found herself alone in the Hyuugas' kitchen, finishing up her cup of chamomile tea to calm her nerves. Lee had dozed off in the sofa thirty minutes prior, lulled by the buzz of the late-night news on television. Tenten had quietly turned the TV off and watched her friend snore softly, a little snort interspersing with his snores every once in a while, and Tenten felt in her heart an ache that she used to feel when she was still in L.A., whenever she remembered the friends she had left in Tokyo.

But it was a choice she made, an opportunity she could not, did not want to miss, and five years later here she was, only a few feet away from two of the most important guys in her life, and still feeling completely and utterly alone.

Sighing, Tenten placed her mug down the counter, intent on checking on Lee to see if he had not fallen off the couch, and turned around, only to find a pair of lavender eyes meeting her brown ones, shock and fear evident in them.

There stood in front of her, just a few feet away, was Hyuuga Neji, hand on the kitchen door, obviously unaware that anyone was still up and about the small household.

"Nej—"

And then he was off, running back to his room, before Tenten could even think of giving chase.

"Neji! Wait! Neji, please!"

She sprinted as fast as she could to keep up, but it was no use. Tenten was a member of the girls' track team back in high school, but Neji was member of the men's track team _and _basketball league. Of course there was no way she could beat him in a race. Nobody in their old high school could, except maybe for Lee. Half a minute more and she heard the loud bang of the door, and the click of the lock, and then she was there right where she had started, a stupid door separating her from her best friend.

"Neji, open up!" she yelled, banging her fist against the door, not caring if she was making a racket loud enough to wake up the neighbors. "Damn it, Neji, it's me! Open up and face me, please!"

She was not sure how long she had been yelling, but she stopped when she felt a warm hand on her shoulder. Tenten turned and found Lee smiling sadly at her, having been woken up by her shouts, and a couple of feet behind stood Hinata and Hanabi, holding each other in worry and fright.

"Tenten," Lee quietly said, and Tenten wanted to shake her head no, _can't you see Neji is in there? He needs us!_, but her childhood friend was giving her a look that said it was no use, they wouldn't be able to reach out to Neji that way, and a sudden sob echoed in the walls, and Tenten was not sure if it came from Hinata or Hanabi or _her._

"But . . . Neji," she started, only to notice Lee wiping tears from her cheeks—when had she started crying?—and the next second she was on her knees, her childhood friend's arms wrapped around her, as Tenten cried and cried and cried at the tragedy of it all.

**Hikikomori no Jinsei**

**(Or, The Life of a Hikikomori)**

* * *

**Yoshaaaa! A new chapter! Ah, the drama!**

**Oh, and did you guys see my new cover image? That's Neji with a sock puppet Neji. Seriously, I think I died when I saw this. Naruto SD really destroyed what reputation he built in the Naruto series, right? But at least he's alive, right? Right?**

**But anyway, thank you, thank you to everyone who read and reviewed: ****Ami1010****, ****katskee****, ****FruitySmell****, ****misspandalily****, ****Senka Hitomi****, ****Ichigo-chan, ****anthropomorphychan****, and ****Lili Bibi****. This is a pretty slow-boiled story, so thank you for sticking with me through the opening chapters.**

**Reviews will be rad, constructive criticism cool, and flames, well, they will be used to fan the flames of Gai-sensei's everlasting youth.**

**Yosh!**


	5. Track Five: Good Ole Days

"_You're late."_

_Tenten paused in midstep and turned to eye her best friend, who was leaning against the nearest wall, arms across his chest. He was staring at her with a disapproving look, like she had just stolen the last Jell-O in the fridge and then set the tail of his pet pigeon—not that he had one—on fire._

_The brunette shrugged and titled her head toward the door. "Blame nii-san," she said in defense of herself. "He got home late, something about encountering a gigantic tortoise in the highway—though I suspect that's a lie—so we only got here now." Then, narrowing her eyes, "What are _you_ doing out here?" she asked. "Hasn't the party started yet?"_

_Neji's right brow twitched slightly, the only indication that he was annoyed. "That idiot wouldn't start the stupid event until you and Kakashi get here. Something about not wanting his fragrant freesia to miss the cake cutting."_

_To this, Tenten grinned. "Of course," she said, walking to where Neji was standing, and then grabbing his left arm to tug him forward. "Well, come on then. Lee only turns fifteen once, after all."_

_The Hyuuga mumbled something quietly as he let himself be dragged along. "What was that?" Tenten chirped, not bothering to turn to him as she trudged toward the Rocks' dining room, where the rest of Lee's visitors were probably waiting._

"_I said," Neji repeated, voice laced with impatience. "Don't ever be late like that again."_

_Tenten chuckled and quickened her pace. "All right."_

_**Track Five: "Good Ole Days" by Stephen Speaks**_

Tenten's eyes snapped open and she found herself on her own bed, the morning sun's gentle rays filtering in through the half-closed blinds of her room. Beside her, a half-asleep Ino stirred, muttered something incoherently, before turning to her other side in an attempt to get in a few more minutes of sleep.

The brunette shut her eyes and tried to grasp the remaining threads of her dream—a memory, really—and she wondered what it meant, if it meant anything at all. After all, she had not even thought of that incident—Lee's fifteenth birthday party—for a long time, just happily stored it away in her memory box, together with the rest of her childhood recollections. To suddenly dream of a seemingly ordinary event a long time ago was unusual, especially since Tenten's dreams usually consisted of ninjas in green vests wielding sharp, pointy weapons.

And then something suddenly clicked in her mind—she could have sworn she heard a literal _tic _somewhere—and a small smile formed on her lips, a kindle of hope in her heart. _It just might work, _she breathed out to herself, suddenly eager to get out of bed and go through with the day, just so she could set her plan into action.

Sitting upright, Tenten then gently nudged her friend awake, telling her that they have to report in the university by eight, so they better start moving if they didn't want to be late for their first day of work. It was only five-thirty in the morning, Tenten noticed as she glanced at her bedside clock, but Ino took ridiculously long in the shower, so Tenten usually made it a point to give the blonde extra time to fix herself up.

"Five more minutes," Ino mumbled before burying her face under Tenten's fluffy pink pillow.

"Come on, sleepyhead," Tenten poked Ino's side in an attempt to wake her up. "If you finish getting ready in less than thirty minutes, I'll treat you to a non-fat caffe latte. Deal?"

Ino muttered something incomprehensible from under the pillow, but a few more seconds and she was up, shooting Tenten a weary half-hearted glare before telling her that she better keep that promise, and she wanted whipped cream on it, damn it.

Tenten offered a small grin and watched her friend drag herself out of bed, before she herself stood up, stretched her arms upward, walked toward the door and opened it, only to find her brother standing in the doorway, clad in a frilly pink apron—_what the hell, that's my first-year home economics' project!—_holding a spatula with his right hand.

"Mornin', my cute imouto-chan," Kakashi greeted, eyes half-lidded, as if he was merely sleepwalking. "Pancakes are ready in the dining room. Want me to drive you and Ino to the university? Nice panda pajamas, by the way."

Tenten happily slammed the door to his face.

_**"**__**Memory is a part of the present. It builds us up inside; it knits our bones to our muscles and keeps our hearts pumping. It is memory that reminds our bodies to work, and memory that reminds our spirits to work to: it keeps us who we are."**__**  
**__**―**__**Gregory Maguire**__**, **_**Son of a Witch**

"One tall Caffe Americano to go for Uchiha-san!"

Uchiha Sasuke picked up his order from the counter, paid no attention to the blushing barista, and made his way out of the corner coffee shop near his office. His head was throbbing, not just because of the amount of paperwork he had to finish for the entire past week, but also because of a small lump caused by the impact of a Gregory Maguire paperback against his skull.

When Sasuke had turned to glare murderously at the prankster who dared to chuck a book at him, all he saw was the fleeing form of the panda-haired brunette he had bumped into for two straight days in a row. He figured there was not point running after her—can she sprint, that one—and when he looked down at the offending object thrown at him, he was somewhat amused to see that it was _Son of a Witch, _which not only was his favorite Maguire title, but also an appropriate comeback for his _Lost _commentary.

He later bought the book—even when he already had a worn-out copy at home—as a keepsake, impressed as he was at the feisty but weird woman who seemed to kept running into him wherever he went.

And just when Sasuke's train of thought had begun to wander from the unexpected yet pleasant experience to the more mundane work that was waiting for him in the office, he felt a rough bump against his chest, causing him to spill his coffee all over his white long-sleeve shirt.

"Oh my gawd I'm so sorry!"

Sasuke knew he should be furious because his skin just got burned from the scalding beverage and his clothes were sopping wet, but the voice sounded so welcome and familiar he found it hard to keep a blank face as his eyes zeroed in on the other person frantically searching inside her bag for a handkerchief or a wad of tissue, perhaps.

"You are the most scatterbrained person I have ever met," he said as matter-of-factly as he could, even when he was smirking deep inside.

The panda-haired brunette's arm froze in midair, in the act of wanting to wipe off the mess she made on Sasuke's shirt, and gasped, before she jumped backward and pointed an accusing finger at him.

"You!"

To this, Sasuke merely raised an eyebrow. "Me."

Round hazelnut eyes clashed with his onyx ones, and before Sasuke could say anything else the lady's eyes narrowed and regarded him suspiciously.

"Are you stalking me or something?" she accused, arms going in front of her in what Sasuke could tell was a defense position. _She knows taekwondo? _he found himself wondering quietly as he watched her carefully place her left foot a couple of inches backward.

"I'm not the one who keeps bumping into me everywhere. Maybe _you're _stalking me," he replied coolly, face still devoid of emotion, but the amusement in his voice was obvious.

"The nerve! As if I'd waste time on a chickenbutt-hair like you!" the lady shrieked—Sasuke actually raised an eyebrow at the lame jab at his hairstyle—before turning around to march away, only to turn back and hiss, "I hope your head's still throbbing from that book, jerk!"

Sasuke wanted to tell her that he could actually file assault charges against her for what she did over the weekend, but by then the weird woman had already turned the corner and disappeared. Shaking his head, the handsome man turned the other way, not paying heed to the curious—and lovestruck—looks he got from the crowd, and tried to remember if he had an extra shirt in the office.

Miraculously, the throbbing ache in his head had disappeared by the time he stepped into his building.

_**Nostalgia – a wistful or excessively sentimental yearning for return to or of some past period or irrecoverable condition**_

"Where the hell's my latte?"

Tenten held up a hand to indicate that Ino should stop talking, and then she unceremoniously plopped down the swivel chair beside the blonde. The rookie model paused in the middle of typing on her laptop and eyed her friend, noticing her flushed face and heavy breathing. "Okay?" she started, turning her body slightly to face Tenten. "Never mind the coffee. What happened to you?"

The brunette took a deep breath, held it in for a couple of seconds, and then slowly released it, as if by doing so, she was releasing the negative energy stored in her head as well.

Then, "I bumped into that jerk again."

Ino blinked, and waited for about five seconds, before realizing that Tenten was not going to elaborate any further. And so she took her cue and prompted her, "Which jerk?" she asked in her most patronizing tone, knowing full well that Tenten used the term generously for people who pissed her off.

"_That _jerk!" Tenten hissed, banging her fist against the Psychology department's computer table, making Ino jump slightly in surprise. "That chickenbutt-hair we ran into the airport! The same creep I bumped into in Kinokuniya!"

It took Ino about two seconds to process what Tenten had just said, before everything clicked into place. "The hot gay guy?" she asked, tilting her head to the side. And then, in sudden realization—and maybe annoyance, how could Tenten have failed to mention this to her earlier?—"You bumped into him in Kinokuniya, too?!"

The brunette narrowed her eyes. "Don't," she warned, but Ino was already on a roll. "He must be your destiny, Tennie-pennie! Imagine bumping into him three times in a row?" the blonde squealed, swiveling her chair so that it rotated three hundred sixty degrees counter-clockwise. "I mean, sure, he's probably gay, but hey, you know what my motto is, right? You should hook up with a gay guy at least once in your life!"

And suddenly she was being grabbed by the shoulders by an irate taekwondo blue belter, hazelnut-brown eyes burning as she hissed, "I don't care if he's gay or the last guy on the planet. I am _not _hooking up with that jerk, no matter how hot he is!" _Besides, _Tenten muttered darkly, _I've reached my quota of "hooking up with a gay guy" way back in first year high school. Come to think of it, Deidara-senpai kind of looks like Ino. Hmm. Maybe that's what had drawn me into her?_

Complete silence for exactly three seconds, before Ino's lips stretched into a wide grin that snapped Tenten out of her internal musing and made her wince.

"So you _do_ think he's hot!"

_**Jerk – **__**an idiot or stupid person; an insensitive, selfish, ignorant, cocky person who is inconsiderate and does stupid things**_

Hinata opened the front door and let Tenten in, smiling shyly at the pretty brunette before closing the door behind them. "Hanabi's in her room doing her homework," the mild-mannered Hyuuga informed their visitor. "But she'll come out by dinnertime."

"I'm afraid I can't stay for dinner, Hinata," Tenten said, slight remorse tainting her voice. "I promised my friend Ino I'll tour her around Tokyo by seven."

"Oh," the older Hyuuga sister whispered. "I—I understand. Of course."

Tenten smiled kindly at the younger lady and started walking toward Neji's room. "I've been thinking about how to reach out to Neji, Hinata," the brunette said conversationally as the usually-quiet woman followed her. "I don't . . . I'm not sure yet how to do it, but I want to try something anyway."

They walked down the corridor in silence, and stopped directly in front of Neji's door. Tenten placed a hand on the cool wood, then leaned her forehead against it, and Hinata wondered if the brunette was imagining Neji to be standing at the other side, listening closely to their every move.

"Neji's hiding his feelings from everyone right now, more than he did before," Tenten continued, unaware of Hinata's inner thoughts, "but if I keep talking to him, reminding him of all our past experiences together, maybe the old Neji will resurface and then we can help him work everything out, right?"

Hinata didn't have the heart to tell her cousin's best friend that that was what she has been doing for the past six months, and that it did absolutely nothing to get Neji to open his door for her, or anybody else. But as she risked a glance at Tenten, she no longer saw the woman who broke down in front of them just two nights ago. In her place stood the fiery lady she knew and looked up to, the only person who can tell off her nii-san for being as stubborn as a rock—Tenten's words, not hers—the one girl Neji had connected with, even back when they were still kids.

And all of a sudden a tiny bud of hope bloomed in her heart, because if they needed someone who could help her cousin Neji get out of the slump he was currently in, Hinata knew Tenten would be perfect for the job.

_**Serendipity – the faculty or phenomenon of finding valuable or agreeable things not sought for**_

"Unbelievable."

Sasuke looked up from the book he was reading, and found a pair of brown eyes glaring at him. He had been quietly sitting in a corner booth of the diner across his workplace, unmindful of the busy atmosphere caused by the lunch hour, when the panda-haired woman surprisingly—though Sasuke should really stop being surprised by now—ran into him again.

_At least she didn't literally run into me this time, _he thought wryly as he responded to the brunette's glare with a blank stare.

"You really are stalking me, aren't you?" the stranger hissed at him, hands clutching her tray filled with food.

Sasuke raised his eyebrows in retaliation. "I got here first," he said slowly, as if talking to a kid. "Who's stalking who?"

To this, the brunette huffed, muttered a quiet _jerk, _and turned away, scanning the diner for vacant tables so she could eat her meal in peace. Sasuke followed her with his eyes, and inwardly smirked when he realized that there were no other tables available at that moment.

"I don't mind sharing my table with a stalker," he offered, amusement tinting his tone, and the panda-haired stranger turned to him, irritation burning in her eyes, and opened her mouth to speak, before suddenly pausing, as if in deep thought, and then slamming her tray onto Sasuke's table.

"Don't think I want to do this, jerk," she muttered, before promptly picking up her double cheeseburger and stuffing it into her mouth, uncaring if she looked absolutely unlady-like in doing so. Sasuke could not help but compare her with Sakura—how feminine and classy she was when the woman in front of him was anything but those characteristics—and then quickly pushed his insufferable pink-haired colleague out of his mind, smirking at the stranger before turning back to his book.

A couple of seconds of awkward silence, and then the brunette suddenly asked, obvious astonishment in her voice, "You read Tsunade?"

Sasuke looked up, pleased and surprised that the woman knew of one of his favorite authors. "You know her?" he couldn't help but ask.

The panda-hair shot him with a _duh _look, like he had just asked the most stupid question in the world. "She's one of my heroes," she explained, waving a hand in the air for emphasis. "Her volume on child psychology is one of my favorite books." She eyed the book with obvious interest. "Is that the original edition of her first book? I've been looking all over the States for that! They said it's been out of print for five years!"

Sasuke was impressed. It was not every day that he meets someone who knew the printing history of the titles he read. "It is," he answered coolly, watching the woman's brown eyes suddenly sparkle. "It's a gift from the author herself."

That last statement left the brunette's mouth hanging open. "You know Tsunade personally?!"

To this, Sasuke smirked. "She's the mentor of one of my colleagues at work."

Sudenly, there's a wistful look in her eyes, something that made Sasuke's stomach churn in an unfamiliar manner. "Ohhh how I envy her," she sighed, then picked up a French fry and popped it inside her mouth.

Sasuke considered the woman for a moment, and then closed his book and handed it to her. "Here."

The stranger blinked, and then eyed him suspiciously. "What?"

"I'll let you borrow it," Sasuke replied, book and hand still extended, smirk still in place.

The woman blinked again. "Why?"

Sasuke paused, unsure of how to answer the question. Why was he offering the book to her in the first place? They didn't even know each other, and he wasn't sure if she would return the book to him if she was allowed to take it home with her.

And then the answer came to him as simply as if it had always been there, lurking in the back of his mind for a week running.

"So that I'll have a reason to see you again."

_**Is it true that if you do anything for **__**three weeks**__** it will become a **__**habit**__**?**_

Neji leaned against his bedroom door, eyes on the wall clock he set across the room. It was ten minutes to six, meaning Tenten would be arriving in ten minutes, and then talk to him from the other side of the door, chatting with him like there was not a partition that separated them, that separated him from her.

She had been coming for more than three weeks already, at exactly six in the evening, and at first Neji could not believe it, how she could still return and try to reach out to him, even after he had so rudely run away from her as she gave chase, even as she cried and cried outside his bedroom, until Lee and Hanabi had to coax her into leaving, while Hinata echoed her sobs.

Neji knew all of this, because he had his ear pressed against the door then, his hand on the doorknob, wanting nothing more to turn it open and face his friends, to apologize for making them worry, to tell them there was nothing to be concerned about, he was okay, he was, he was.

But he had been so afraid then, still was—of them, of himself—that he couldn't move, not even when he was certain that no one else lingered outside his door.

Two days later Tenten returned, and he heard her call his name softly, and at first Neji wanted to cover his ears and will her to go away, but was just _so _tired of lying to himself. He missed her, damn it, missed any contact with the outside world, so in the end he walked slowly toward the door, leaned his back against it before sliding down the floor to sit cross-legged. He imagined Tenten doing the same from the other side, so that they're really sitting back to back, except there's that cold piece of wood separating them from each other.

And then Tenten started telling him stories.

Except they weren't really stories, more of memories they've had together—the day they met, the first time Lee challenged him to a mini-race around the school's quadrangle, the time the three of them got detention because of some silly antic Tenten pulled in the Chemistry lab, the festival when she discovered her crush was gay—and slowly Neji felt his heart get lighter and lighter with each passing day.

Three weeks and four days later, Neji decided he was ready—not to forgive himself just yet, or to face the outside world again, but at least to let Tenten in, just like he did before, one windy afternoon when he found her in the neighborhood's playground, nursing a bloody knee and yet grinning the widest grin his six-year-old self had ever seen.

"_I fell down the monkey bars," _she had said chirpily, and Neji was about to comment harshly on how girls should not act so brusquely and unlady-like,when the girl in twin buns extended her right arm in an offer of friendship, and asked, _"Would you like to try climbing it with me?"_

And climb it with her he did that day, and the next day, and the next, until he could no longer remember a time when Tenten was not part of his life, after that fateful day.

And right now, as he sat quietly with his back against the door, willing the hands of his clock to tick faster, he wished for nothing more than to have Tenten remain a part of his life—forever.

_**Take me back to the place where we first met, **__**  
**__**Cause being lonely I haven't mastered yet**_

Tenten was having a _very _bad day.

First, she was late for work, courtesy of one Ino Yamanaka who took too long in the shower—something about impressing the cute teacher's assistant in the department—and as a result, got a meaningful look from the department's head. (Ino laughed it off and told her to lighten up—_So what if we're late? It's only our first time since we started our work here—_before all but bouncing toward the new TA, her Chanel 5 tickling Tenten's nose.)

Then, she ran into that jerk come lunchtime, Sasuke, he said his name was—Ino was really going to get it, ditching her last minute so she could eat out with her new friend, so Tenten had to eat alone and subsequently run into that chickenbutt-hair yet _again_. (But maybe it wasn't _that _bad; he lent her that book, right? And Tenten had to admit he was pretty hot, chicken-butt hairstyle and all.)

Next, she had to stay overtime for an impromptu meeting with the team leader of their research project—Ino had nothing to do with this one, thank Kami—making her miss the bus she usually took on her way to Neji's house.

Last, her nii-san agreed to give her a lift to the Hyuugas since his office was only a few blocks away from the university, which normally was a good thing, except that Kakashi wanted to avoid Tokyo traffic and ended up taking a detour, then got lost halfway so he had to backtrack and retrace their trail _twice, _which caused Tenten to be forty-five minutes late from her usual six p.m. visit.

Which led Tenten to her latest predicament—rushing toward Neji's room—thirty minutes after a frantic phone call from Hanabi, since Hinata was too panicky to form a coherent sentence, reporting that Neji was throwing what appeared to be a temper tantrum of epic proportions.

As Tenten all but ran into Hinata as she hurried inside the Hyuugas' living room, she could hear the distinct banging and clanging inside Neji's room, followed by what sounded like splintering glass, and was that cloth being torn apart?

"Neji!" she called, hitting her fist against the door, trying to stay as composed as she could, given the situation. "Neji, I'm here! It's Tenten!"

The noises abruptly stopped, and Tenten held her breath and pressed her left ear against the cold wood, eyes flickering to a wide-eyed Hanabi and teary Hinata, both cowering behind the shelf in the corridor. Ten seconds passed by and still there was no new movement from the other side, and Tenten tensely released her breath and tried for another name call.

"Neji?"

A shuffle of feet, and Tenten imagined Neji walking toward the door, stepping on crumpled pieces of paper and crushed coffee cans.

"You're late."

Tenten gasped, her mind flashing back to a distant memory, filed away in the steel cabinet in her brain labeled High School Memories, and she could not stop a small smile from forming on her lips.

"Blame nii-san," she whispered back, unsure if Neji could hear her, but she was afraid that if she made her voice any louder, it would break and she would choke on her sobs.

A few more seconds of precious quiet, and Tenten heard shuffling once more. Just when Tenten thought that Neji was going to withdraw again, she heard the distinct click of the lock, and this time the sob did break out from her throat.

Throwing a nervous glance at the two female Hyuugas, the brunette tried to get strength from Hinata's kind smile and Hanabi's hopeful grin, then offered the two a thumbs up—oh Lee would have a field day if he sees her doing that—before gently putting her hand on the doorknob and gripping it tightly, breathing once, twice, before turning it clockwise, pleased at the sound of it opening to let her in.

As quietly as she could, she pushed the door and stepped in the room, careful not to let the light in too much, just enough so that she could see the outlines of what was inside the room. There were papers littered everywhere, crumpled music sheets and architecture books, CDs scattered on the floor, and an upturned bed.

And in the farthest corner, the silent figure of Hyuuga Neji, arms wrapped around his legs, head tucked in between his knees.

"Neji?"

The Hyuuga made no response, and Tenten risked a step closer, and then another, and another, until she was standing directly in front of her best friend.

"Neji," she breathed, kneeling quietly in front of him, wanting nothing but to wrap her arms around him, but stopping herself lest Neji widraw further than he already has.

A tense silence enveloped them, and then, "Don't ever be late like that again."

Tears brimmed around her eyes, and Tenten nodded quietly, not caring if Neji was not looking at her to see the gesture. Then, very gently, she placed a hand on one of Neji's, not really enclosing her fingers around it, just pressing it slightly against his skin, and then breathed a silent sigh of relief when the Hyuuga placed his other hand on top of hers.

"All right."

**Hikikomori no Jinsei**

**(Or, The Life of the Withdrawn)**

* * *

**Here we go! You guys have Fruity to thank for this one, because she just won't stop asking me when the next update would be, and I sort of want to make her feel better after that recent earthquake that shook her town. **

**Anyway, I noticed that a few readers felt the last chapter was quite lacking, so I hope this next chapter makes up for it. As I mentioned in the A/N the previous chapter, this story is pretty soft-boiled, and I'm trying to match the pace of the story with the outline and song list I made, so some chapters will be short, and some very long, i.e., this one. (Or maybe I just suck at balancing my chapters. Heh.)**

**But I promise every section is important to the entire flow of the story (even the InoxLee ones!), maybe except for the KakaTen siblingship, tee hee. That one, I'm inserting just because. I dare you all to tell me you don't like it. Muahahahaha! /glares at Senka for support**

**But thank you for the constructive criticisms, and for those who defended my case, and well, just everyone who is still staying with me despite the slow progress of the plot. Well, the introductory chapters are over now, so I think the story will move at a faster pace starting the next one.**

**Special thanks to my reviewers: ****Ichigo-chan****, ****misspandalily****, s****himmeringbluelight****, A****mi1010****, ****Senka Hitomi****, ****FruitySmell****, Karen, ****marionne345****, and the two guests who did not leave their names. (I'm not sure if you're two different people, but I'll hazard a guess and say you are. I therefore dub you Guest01 and Guest02. Yosh).**

**Again, ****reviews will be rad, constructive criticism cool, and flames, well, they will be used to fan the flames of Gai-sensei's everlasting youth.**

**Yosh!**


	6. Track Six: Just a Little Girl

_Fifteen-year-old Hatake Kakashi held his sister's right hand as the last of the visitors left. He was sporting a splitting headache and a heavy heart, and still he kept his expression pleasant, or as pleasant as he could, given the circumstances. His imouto needed him, so he had to be strong for both of them._

_The tears could come later. Much, much later._

_In the meantime, he stared warily at their father's lawyer—a grandfatherly figure in a gray business suit—his grip on Tenten's hand firm but comforting, and waited for the older man to finish saying his piece._

"_Are you sure you do not want to live with your uncle? It will be easier for you and Tenten, especially during this period."_

_Kakashi shook his head in response. "I already talked to him and he agreed to provide a written approval that we can give to our landlord. The insurance that we will get should be enough to cover the rent and other expenses until I become of legal age."_

_Sarutobi Hiruzen looked grave, but gave in after a few more moments of silence. "All right then," he acquiesced. "Sakumo was a good friend, so if there is anything you need, don't hesitate to call. You got that?"_

_Kakashi nodded, and then watched as the lawyer knelt on one knee and offered twelve-year-old Tenten a handshake. "Promise me you'll take care of your nii-san for me, Tenten-chan?"_

_The little girl sniffed but nodded, before shaking the older man's hand, like she used to whenever the lawyer dropped by their house to talk to their father. "I promise, Sarutobi-jii-san."_

_And then the lawyer was gone, and brother and sister stood alone in front of their parents' graves, a freshly placed tombstone joining the other one that had been there for years._

_They remained quiet for a few more minutes, and Kakashi tried to steel himself for what he figured would be a difficult time. Going home to an empty house was not appealing, but Tenten had been up for fifteen hours straight, and he has to make her rest—force her, if needed be—lest he wanted his sister to be sick._

_And he would _not_ let Tenten get sick, or hurt, not if he could help it. He already lost his parents. Damn it all if he was going to lose his sister as well._

"_Ten-chan," he began, but stopped when the younger Hatake sniffed softly._

"_Neh, nii-san," she whispered. "Otou-san is with Kaa-san now, right?"_

_Kakashi pulled his hand away from Tenten's grasp and placed it on her left shoulder, effectively pulling her close. "That's right, Ten-chan," he replied, although he was not really one who believed in life after death. "They're finally together again."_

_Tenten nodded and drew a shaky breath. And then, in the smallest voice possible, "I miss them."_

_And then Kakashi was kneeling in front of his sister, with his hands on either shoulder. "I miss them too, Ten-chan," he confided. "But that's why we have each other, right? So that we won't have to be so sad about them being gone?"_

_The younger Hatake nodded and wiped her tears away, trying to be brave. "Right," she said in her small, small voice._

_The next second and she was in her brother's embrace, and as Tenten sobbed and sobbed and sobbed, Kakashi held her closer, forcing himself to not shed a tear._

"_Don't worry, Ten-chan," he whispered. "I'll make sure you'll never be this sad again."_

_Tenten sniffed. "You promise?"_

_To this, Hatake Kakashi nodded, and hugged his sister tighter. "I promise."_

_**Track Six: Just a Little Girl (Trading Yesterday)**_

Neji watched silently as his best friend worked on a Rubic's cube, concentration on her pretty face. Tenten had arrived seven minutes earlier, and greeted him cheerily before grabbing the first thing she could get her hands on. Then she proceeded to complain about how she had never succeeded in matching all the colors for the damned toy, and then spent the next five minutes trying to figure out how the "devil's spawn of a game" worked.

Half a minute more and Tenten huffed, before thrusting the toy in front of Neji's face. The Hyuuga flinched a little at the sudden invasion of personal space, but had no time to move away as the brunette muttered, "Can't we just peel off the stickers or something? This is giving me a headache!"

A small smile formed on Neji's lips as he took the cube away from Tenten's grasp and quietly worked on the puzzle. Three minutes and he was done, and Tenten tossed her hands in the air and gave an irate "Unbelievable!" before grabbing the toy from him.

"How the hell did you do that?!" she complained, eyeing the cube closely, as if there was a trick he used to get the colors to match on each side.

Neji shook his head mildly and chose not to answer. What was he supposed to say anyway? That he had spent more than six months cooped up inside his room, and the Rubic's cube was one of the items he used to pass off the time, to make sure his brain cells still functioned properly?

No, he did not think Tenten would appreciate the humor behind that small revelation.

So he kept quiet, as he usually did whenever Tenten dropped by for a visit, knowing she would take the cue and start talking, for their both sakes.

As expected, in a few more seconds Tenten started talking again, only this time she did not tell him about things that happened in the past. No, lately—three days, to be exact—Tenten had stopped recalling fond memories from their childhood and began telling him of what was currently happening to her—her day in the office, her activities with her brother, Lee, or that Ino friend of hers—and to the outside world in general.

Neji suspected that Tenten was weaning him off seclusion slowly, day by day, and he was not sure if he was ready for it.

Or would be, _ever._

And then, ". . . you believe it? He didn't even ask me to sit down! Just took the book I handed and smirked, _smirked, _Neji!, smirked and walked away!"

The Hyuuga blinked, realizing he had lost track of what Tenten was telling him. If his suspicion was correct though, it would be about someone from work, perhaps, that bothered his friend a great deal.

"He?" Neji blurted out before he could stop himself.

Tenten stopped in mid-rant and eyed him sourly. "You haven't been listening at all!"

Neji opened his mouth to reply, and then realized that there was no denying it: He had, in fact, not been listening to her, lost as he was in his own thoughts, his own worries.

"Hmf," Tenten mock-pouted, before waving a hand in between them. "I said there's this jerk that's been making my life miserable since I got to Tokyo one and a half month ago."

To this Neji's eyebrows met a little, his protective side surfacing. "Is he someone from the university?" He wondered if he would be forced to leave the house soon to make a statement about hurting the people precious to him—one feisty brunette, in particular.

Said brunette shook her head and titled her head to the side. "I don't think so. I don't know much about him, aside from the fact that he reads Tsunade and is _very_ annoying."

Neji nodded, trying to digest this new piece of information. It was not hard to irritate Tenten, that much he knew from the years he has spent with her, so it wasn't a surprise that a random person could get her worked up this much. But something weird was starting to settle in his stomach, something acidic and scaly, like a green-eyed dragon, perhaps.

"Anyway, he lent me this book a week ago—the original edition of Tsunade's first book, can you believe it!—and we agreed that I would return it to him today. So I went to the diner where we had accidentally run into each other for the third time, and I returned the book to him, and he didn't even say thank you! Just smirked at me, told me he'll see me again soon, and then walked away!" she finished, her voice sounding incredulous. "Can you believe that jerk? Like I'd ever want to see him and his chicken-butt hair again after _that_!"

Neji regarded his friend quietly, as if trying to decide if there was something she was hiding from him, if she had not told him the whole story. But Tenten had never lied to him before, at least not from what he could remember, and he didn't think she would suddenly feel inclined to start now.

So he let it go and nodded his head, before offering a small smile in response, and a quiet, "You don't have to," to which Tenten eagerly nodded, as if she was relieved that someone was taking her side for once.

"Damn straight I don't!" she said, pumping her fist in the air much like Lee would, before suddenly eyeing Neji with something akin to hesitation, and said, without preamble, "I brought some of your favorite herring soba, by the way."

Neji smiled. He couldn't help it. It was just like Tenten to shift from one topic to another under the same breath. Slowly, Neji felt his insides grow warm at the familiarity of things. Like he did not just spend the last six months in reclusion, hiding from the world.

But then Tenten started to invade his personal space again, placing her hand gently atop his own, and suddenly his heart started constricting, like he was drowning, like he was in desperate need of air.

"Neji," the brunette said slowly. "Let's eat it with Hinata and Hanabi, please?"

And Neji would swear later that his heart had plummeted to his stomach—mostly from fear, and a small part from disappointment, with the realization that Tenten had not planned to dine solo with him that evening.

_**You could never understand the demons that I face.**_

Dinner was not as awkward as she thought it would be. Sure, it had taken her another hour to convince Neji to get out of his room and join his cousins for supper, and by then the soba she had brought had gone cold so they had to heat it up first, but Hinata had prepared rice cakes and Hanabi baked oatmeal cookies, and then they sat around the table and tried to talk as amicably as possible, both Hyuuga girls in their best behavior, and Tenten didn't even have to warn Hanabi not to make weird bird jokes, which she knew the youngest Hyuuga was wont to do whenever Neji was nearby.

Fifteen minutes into the meal—while Hanabi was recounting, more like ranting about, her lesson in Calculus class earlier that day—the front door opened, and all four occupants of the dining table froze in surprise. They all turned their heads to the dining room's door to listen more closely to the approaching footsteps, and Tenten had to quietly place her hand on top of Neji's in an effort to calm him down. The Hyuuga clenched his fist against the fabric of his pants, but did not push Tenten's hand away.

And then the door opened, and there stood in the doorway was Hyuuga Hiashi—Hinata and Hanabi's father, Neji's uncle, and the twin brother of his deceased father. Neji's fist clenched tighter, and Tenten's hold on him tightened in response.

It was Hanabi who broke the tense silence after a few seconds.

"What are you doing here, Otou-san?" the youngest Hyuuga asked, without disrespect but mere curiosity as befitting her age.

"I . . . I i-invited him f-for dinner," Hinata whispered from across Tenten, her stutter suddenly returning, an obvious evidence of the stress she was feeling. "I t-thought w-we could eat a-as a family. I-it's been s-so long a-ago, after all."

Tenten stopped herself from cringing or shaking the younger woman harshly. _Oh Hinata, _she lamented, keeping her reprimand locked in the pit of her stomach. _Foolish, well-meaning Hinata. _

And then suddenly Neji was up, and quietly he asked to be excused, before bolting out the door, flinching as his arm brushed against his uncle's clothes.

"But you haven't even tasted my cookies, Neji-nii!" Hanabi called out, impulsively.

Five seconds after Tenten stood as well, shot Hinata and Hanabi a worried look, and grabbed a cookie and a napkin, and then, "I better give him one then, neh, Hanabi-chan?" then turned and bowed in respect to Hiashi, before running after Neji out the door.

She heard Hinata's strangled sob even when she was already in the corridor.

_**Time cannot heal what you will never recognize.**_

"Neji?" she whispered, knocking softly against the Hyuuga's bedroom door. When there came no response, Tenten risked turning the doorknob, relieved that her best friend had at least not locked the door.

"Neji," she whispered a little louder, stepping into the room, not bothering with the lights. She knew where Neji was hunched over—the same location he had been in, the first time she stepped into his room, more than one month ago. "I got you one of Hanabi's cookies," she tried to talk to him when she reached his side, kneeling in front of him like she did before. "It's not too sweet, so I'm sure you'll like it."

There was no reply, so Tenten tried again, gently placing her hand on his, hoping he'd place his other hand on hers, like he did the first time. "Neji?"

But, "I'd like to be alone."

Something in Tenten's chest twisted, because Neji was pushing her out again, when she had worked so hard just so he'd open up enough to let her in. She wanted to throw her arms around him then, and maybe shake him, demand that he stop being so damn stubborn, but she did not study four years of Psychology for nothing. She knew the worst thing she could do was force Neji to do anything he didn't want to, especially when his mental state was anything but stable.

Drawing a shaky breath, Tenten forced a smile, even when she knew Neji couldn't see, and nodded. "Okay then," she whispered, because she knew her voice would break if she spoke normally. "I'll just leave the cookie on your desk, okay, Neji?"

Still no response, so Tenten had no choice but to stand slowly, hoping that Neji would stop her the last second, and ask her to stay with him instead.

But the hikikomori didn't move from his spot, not even when Tenten closed the bedroom door behind her as she stepped out of the room.

_**Relapse – **__**a deterioration in someone's state of health after a temporary improvement**_

Tenten found Hiashi sitting on the couch when she returned to the living room to collect her things. She paused, hesitant to approach, because unlike Hizashi, who was friendly and was like a second father to her, or at least a patronizing uncle, the older twin Hiashi had always made her feel uncomfortable.

"Hiashi-san," she greeted, and then quietly picked up her bag and books and turned for the door. "I'll be taking my leave now. Good night."

"Tenten," came the firm, no-nonsense voice, and the brunette mentally cursed the universe for conspiring with her so. Was it not enough that she had to deal with one difficult Hyuuga that day?

But being the polite person that she was, she gritted her teeth and turned to face Hanabi's father once again. "Yes, Hiashi-san?"

"I heard from Hinata and Hanabi how you've been helping Neji with his . . . _condition_."

Tenten inwardly sighed, knowing this conversation was going to take place sooner or later. "Ah, yes. At least, I'm trying to, Hiashi-san." Because everything she had done since day one did not matter anymore, no thanks to his untimely intrusion.

"I'd like to let you know how much I appreciate what you are doing," the Hyuuga patriarch said, making the brunette blink. "As you know, my nephew is not the expressive kind of person, as is usual for people from my clan." A pause. "I'm afraid that his introverted nature is preventing him from coping with his father's demise."

"He just needs time to grieve, Hiashi-san," Tenten said in defense of her friend. "People have different ways of dealing with loss."

"I understand," Hiashi answered, before standing from the couch to face Tenten squarely. "I have a request for you, if I may be so bold."

"Request?" Oh she did not like where this was going.

"I want you to convince Neji to seek outside professional help."

It was all Tenten could do not to hiss at the older man. "You want him to see a shrink." She knew he had a point, that Neji needed to go to therapy sooner or later, but she wished Hiashi didn't have to force responsibility on her like that.

"Yes," Hiashi nodded. "I already have a contact who promised to accommodate Neji as soon as he is willing to accept counseling. Will you help, Tenten?"

Tenten closed her eyes and counted from one to ten, forcing herself to remain calm despite her racing, raging, heart. When she finally felt she was composed enough, she opened her eyes, and met the almost-pleading look of the Hyuuga patriarch.

Tenten's heart immediately melted at the sight.

"Of course, Hiashi-san."

_**"**__**Yes! This is what youth is all about!**__**"**_

_**-Maito Gai, **_**Naruto**_** chapter 38**_

Kakashi threw his car keys on his dresser and took out his phone from his pocket in order to retrieve his voice messages. The first one was from a car insurance agent—_sorry, already have one_—the second from Jiraiya, asking for ideas for his next novel—_better get back with him soon, I do have some ideas—_and the third one was a prank call from what sounded like a giggly junior high school girl.

And then a booming voice echoed against his ear, which would have made any other person wince, except that Kakashi was used to it by now.

_Greetings from the beautiful island of Hashima, my exuberant best friend and eternal rival! I called to let you know that I have finished running five times over the historic island's fortress of a seawall and therefore have beaten you in the challenge I—_

Kakashi deleted the message without bothering to listen to the rest of it.

He has just finished shrugging off his shirt and was in the process of unzipping his pants when his bedroom door suddenly flew open, revealing a fuming Tenten in the doorway.

"Ten-chan?" The older Hatake paused, his hands still on his fly. "Didn't I teach you how to knock? What if I had been masturbating?"

"Then lock your damned door if you don't want to be disturbed, nii-san no baka!" came Tenten's angry retort, unmindful that her brother was half-naked in front of her. "And put some damn clothes on, will you!"

Kakashi chuckled as he grabbed his discarded shirt on the floor and put it back on. "Why are you upset, Ten-chan? What happened?" he asked, after he had pulled his zipper back up and buttoned his pants on.

The brunette stomped inside the room in a heartbeat. "I want to know what happened to Neji! No one will tell me anything—not you, not Lee, not Hinata nor Hinabi! What have you guys been hiding from me, nii-san?"

Kakashi tried to keep his cool, and started thinking of ways to get out of his current predicament. Maybe he can bribe her with Pocky again? "Has Neji not told you anything?"

"I'm having enough trouble just trying to make him _talk_!"

"Ten-chan," Kakashi almost cooed, suddenly wishing that Ino would appear from somewhere to save his ass. Except that he remembered that Ino was out with Lee, dragged the poor guy to Shibuya that afternoon because Tenten had to go to Neji's place—why he even knew about all of this Kakashi didn't bother to think about, not when his sister was glaring at him in a way that promised a swift kick in the nuts if he said the wrong thing. "It's not up to me to . . ."

"Try to avoid this conversation again, and I swear I will burn your precious Icha Icha collection."

Kakashi paled. "You wouldn't dare."

To this, Tenten sneered. "Oh I would."

"Ten-chan, some of those titles are rare finds!"

"They're porn."

"They're not just porn, my dear imouto-chan. They're literature."

"Still porn."

"But . . ."

"I'm getting a lighter now."

"_Tenten!_"

"Then tell me what I want to know!"

And there they stood, in a stalemate, Kakashi fearing for his precious collection, eyeing Tenten warily through half-lidded eyes.

"Are you sure you really want to know, Ten-chan?" he asked, suddenly somber. "It will be like opening Pandora's Box."

It was a low blow, trying to scare her like that, but to Tenten's credit, she was not deterred. "I _need _to know what happened, nii-san," she said, resolve in her voice, her stance. "If I'm going to help Neji get over his slump, I need to know what caused it in the first place."

Kakashi sighed, before sitting down his bed, as if suddenly spent. "Very well," he said, patting the space beside him. "Better sit down then. Don't want you tripping on your feet in the middle of my tale."

Tenten flashed him a grateful smile, before quickly crossing the room to sit beside him.

"Thank you, nii-san," she breathed, and Kakashi mentally cursed himself for what he was about to do.

Because telling Tenten what had happened more than six months past was the equivalent of breaking the promise he made to her ten years ago.

**Hikikomori no Jinsei**

**(Or, The Life of the Withdrawn)**

* * *

**Next installment, fresh out of the proverbial oven!**

**Please don't give Hinata hate, okay? She meant well, I swear! It's just that they way she tried to help misfired so, uhh, yeah. Don't hate her! And hey, at least Hanabi made oatmeal cookies, right?**

**Uhm, okay, moving on.**

**Just in case people are wondering where the awesome Gai-sensei is, he's in what is nicknamed the Battleship Island, an uninhabited island in the Nagasaki Prefacture. A rather perfect setting for a horror movie, actually. But then again maybe that's why it's called Ghost Island too. Yosh!**

**Thank you to my lovely reviewers ****Dianananananana, ****shimmeringbluelight****, ****misspandalily****, ****silverstargazer****, ****Ami1010****, ****FruitySmell****, Karen, ****Chisa Chispa, ****Krizzie, ****V-quez****, and ****anthropomorphychan****. And to those who added this story to their alerts and favorites. Seriously, thank you.**

**Again, ****reviews will be rad, constructive criticism cool, and flames, well, they will be used to fan the flames of Gai-sensei's everlasting youth.**

**Yosh!**


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